Suspect was arrested at an abandoned food warehouse north of Belen and is charged with attempting to steal the wire from refrigeration units

The Valencia County Sheriff’s Department says a man accused of trying to steal copper wire from refrigeration units in an abandoned food warehouse north of Belen is facing charges of commercial burglary, breaking and entering and evading a police officer, the Valencia County News-Bulletin reported.

Deputy Chris Trujillo said the man — 40-year-old Wayne Clayton — was arrested after a resident who lives near the warehouse reported at about 5:30 a.m. on Thursday seeing someone enter the building, the newspaper reported.

The News-Bulletin said that according to Trujillo, deputies arrived to find Clayton attempting to strip copper wire out of one of the refrigeration units, which are designed to hold frozen food. Trujillo said Clayton ran from deputies but was quickly apprehended, the newspaper reported.

Trujillo told the News-Bulletin that the copper wire in all of the refrigeration units is valued at about $20,000.